Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 242 God of Wealth

General, why don't you consider the occasion? I know you have this habit of confiding in others. But isn't it a bit inappropriate to bring up someone's mother who passed away more than ten years ago in front of your daughter? What if it stirs up painful memories?
Although this woman doesn't seem to have any major problems for now, she is, after all, a noble lady from the capital, quite different from General Ying back then. What if she's heartbroken because of this and goes back to complain about you? My general, you'd better be more careful.

However, General Yuchi completely failed to notice Cui Wenhe's good intentions, and now he pointed it out directly in front of everyone, making Cui Wenhe want to cover his face.

Jiu Que smiled and nodded at the military advisor Cui.

“General Yuchi is a generous and easygoing person, and he is an elder whom Jiuque respects. It’s alright, I also want to know about my mother. Before, when I was in the capital, no one ever mentioned my mother. When I lived on the estate, I thought I had no father or mother.”

"...My dear niece, you've really suffered!"

General Yuchi was heartbroken. He had thought his eldest niece, far from the battlefield, would be living a happy life as a well-bred young lady in the distant capital. He never imagined that shameless pretty boy would dare to mistreat General Ying's daughter! What a despicable scoundrel!
If it weren't for Sister Ying, that pretty boy would probably still be eating dirt in some remote corner! I never imagined that after Sister Ying passed away, that pretty boy surnamed Lin would send this poor child to live on the estate. Heaven have mercy, for so many years no one has mentioned General Ying's heroic deeds to this child. It's truly pitiful, lamentable, and regrettable.

General Yuchi was filled with pity and told Jiu Que many stories of General Ying Chongming's heroic deeds. Jiu Que listened with rapt attention. Although he had heard most of these stories from the Prince of Binyang, hearing them from different people now was quite interesting.

Throughout General Yuchi's narration, the strategist surnamed Cui kept a smile on his face as he observed everyone in the tent. This strategist Cui seemed quite peculiar; a scholar, he had managed to infiltrate the northern frontier army camp, and even seemed to thrive there. Earlier, on their way into the tent, they had encountered many cheering soldiers who greeted Cui with great enthusiasm, clearly familiar with him and lacking the general prejudice against scholars prevalent in the military.

Seemingly noticing that Jiu Que was looking at him, Cui Junshi keenly turned his gaze over and gave her a very gentle smile.

Then everyone started talking about the attack they had encountered on the road.

Speaking of this General Yuchi made him very angry, and he slammed his hand hard on the armrest of the chair.

"Damn it! I've never encountered such slippery, audacious thieves! If they were really rebels, I would have reported them to the court and led thousands of troops to wipe them out. But they're not exactly rebels. They've only robbed grain convoys three times since they appeared. Of course, robbing grain convoys is wrong of them, after all, this is the food our Northern Frontier Army depends on for survival. We need to eat our fill to fight the barbarians! And these guys are incredibly cunning. The third time they robbed a grain convoy, we were almost catching up, but someone leaked the news, and those thieves disappeared in the blink of an eye! We didn't even catch a hair on their heads, it made me so angry!"

"They actually dared to rob you this time, they're really asking for trouble. But speaking of which, niece, you've come with quite a entourage this time. I just saw the armor and weapons your bunch of greenhorns were wearing, they're top-notch! Our Northern Frontier Army has been here for decades, and we've never seen such good equipment. Nephew, you can't be biased, I heard you have connections in the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works, our Northern General's equipment hasn't been replaced in almost five years, could you urge them to get some better supplies for us?"

Jiu Que brought far too many supplies, and the carts leading the way were naturally grain carts. Even now, those carts had dedicated guards; they simply handed over the first few carts of dried meat and grain to the Northern Frontier Army so they could cook for themselves. Hearing this, Jiu Que didn't even blink, just smiled broadly.

“Uncle Yuchi, you’ve already called me your niece, how could I not give you good things? Don’t worry, I do have some connections in the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works, and I’m familiar with their ministers and vice ministers. Before I came here, I already told His Majesty that the situation in the northern frontier is special. Putting aside everything else, the provisions and military equipment must keep up! We can’t let our soldiers bleed and weep!”

"Bleeding and shedding tears... Well said, you truly are my dear niece!"

General Yuchi pondered the words for a moment, thinking the child had spoken very well. Then, a moment later, he realized, what had his nephew said? Had she just casually mentioned telling His Majesty about this? No, was his nephew really that close to His Majesty? So close that he hadn't expected it at all.

General Yuchi carefully rubbed his hands together, stared at Jiu Que with expectant eyes for a while, and then cautiously spoke.

"My dear niece, it sounds like you have a pretty good relationship with His Majesty?"

"Uncle Yuchi, what are you saying? I am merely a subject. It is only because His Majesty is kind and benevolent, and particularly willing to listen to the requests of his subjects, that I was able to obtain so many military supplies. Since the men I brought are already equipped, naturally everyone will receive their own. However, the number of troops in the Northern Frontier Army is simply too large, and it is impossible to equip everyone at once. After all, our Great Jing has so many border defenses. If we were to use the entire nation's resources to equip the Northern Frontier Army, it would likely cause resentment among the garrisons in other regions..."

"Good! Good! No matter how much or how little, as long as you have the intention, your uncle is already satisfied. But speaking of which, how many sets of equipment did you bring? Putting everything else aside, how many swords and knives did you bring with you?"

"In reply to Uncle, they brought 20,000 swords and knives. In addition, there were 8,000 spears, 5,000 suits of armor, and 30,000 cotton-padded clothes..."

One thing after another was revealed, leaving General Yuchi almost dumbfounded. Not only him, but all the other generals around him were also stunned. Their Northern Frontier Army hadn't been this wealthy in years. Just hearing about it sent chills down their spines—not out of fear, but out of sheer joy. They were about to strike it rich!

They're really going to make a fortune!

The way they looked at Jiu Que at this moment didn't seem like they were looking at the descendant of an old friend, but rather like they were looking at a god of wealth!

(End of this chapter)